[b]How important was your third down defense today?[/b]"That was one big thing that we have been working on all camp. We kind of let up in the second half and that is something we have to get through, but we will get through starting next week."

[b]Were you happy with your rush defense?[/b]"It was a good start, even without Greg (Middleton) because he just adds another element to it. Those guys play hard and that was what we expected from them."

[b]How does practice against your offense help you during your games?[/b]"It was big. The fast-paced that they go out and the tempo that they go out really helped us because we wore them out."

[b]How are you feeling after your first game back since a broken leg?[/b]"I feel OK. It's not 100 (percent), but I feel good."

[b]Are you hoping that your reps will increase as the season goes on?[/b]"It is all up to the coaches. I will go out there and give my 100 (percent effort) and I think everything will work out."

[b]DeMarlo Belcher, wide receiver[/b]

[b]With you being from Fort Wayne and being a wide receiver, like former wideout James Hardy, do you try to imitate him?[/b]"I look up to him, but I am not trying to be another James Hardy, I am trying to be DeMarlo Belcher and make that name for myself."

[b]Talk about your touchdown catch you made in the second half.[/b]"It was a great catch. I just trust my quarterback. We worked on that in practice and in camp. I had good technique, so it was a good catch."

[b]Talk about seeing so much playing time as a true freshman and being the first true freshman to make a catch in a game.[/b]"I'm excited. It was fun. That is one thing you have to do out there is have fun. It was a good catch and I knew it was coming, so it was pretty fun."

[b]Talk about your impression of the defense as a whole today[/b]"We had responsibilities with the plays to shuffle with the quarterback and the running backs. We had a lot of movement upfront and they put us in great position. So I think the coaching, mainly, helped us out a lot."

[b]Do you think this defense is better than last year's?[/b]"I think we are a lot stronger, have some better depth and are faster off of the ball. I think as an upfront four, we are pretty solid as of right now."

[b]Did you feel you had to step up with Greg Middleton being out for the game (suspension)[/b}"I feel like I had a role to fill and I think I did a pretty good job at it. I played all of the game and, yeah, I think I did good."

[b]Talk about your touchdown run in third quarter[/b]"Well, it has been a rough offseason, obviously. Getting back on the team and following the rules Coach (Lynch) asked me to follow. Today, we just went out there and played really hard. I actually didn't know I was that close to the passing touchdown record. Our main goal was to go out there and score 40. So obviously even though we got the W, we will still have a lot to talk about on Monday because our goal for the whole season is to score 40 points a game and we came up short."

[b]How did you feel about the no-huddle offense?[/b]"I think it worked out excellent. We are in great shape, especially on the offensive line. At one point in the first half, the d-line weren't even getting their hands down for a pass rush. Things were working out, we were making pretty good communication on the line and receivers were running pretty hard routes."

[b]How did it feel to go back out there with the first unit for the first time?[/b]"Butterflies in my stomach. It was kind of the same thing I had last year. My main goal was to not make any mistakes and I am always hard on myself, so I told myself to go out there and not make mistakes, but don't play too cautious."

[b]Did you get faster in the offseason because you seemed to have a burst of speed that left those guys behind you?[/b]"I did a little offseason training. We had a couple of jokes on the team last year when I got ran down at Penn State, well kind of ran down at Penn State when I scored last year. Then (the videogame) College Football '09 came out and my speed rating was a little subpar I think. So everyone was kind of teasing me, so I made it a point today not to get run down by anybody."

[b]You weren't thinking of flipping on your touchdown runs like you did against Iowa last season, were you?[/b]"No, Coach (Matt) Canada kind of made it clear at that point to score a touchdown and give the ball back to the referee and celebrate with the teammates. Coach asked me on the second (touchdown) when I slowed down before I got to the endzone, he said 'Were you thinking about flipping into the endzone?' I said 'No, no sir.'"